Heart of A Protector
Heart of A Protector is the sixth chapter of The Rise of Luna Nova Valkyries, the first story of Little Witch Academia: Witches of Midgard. Summary Akko and her friends learned about Molly and Ursula aka. Chariot's origin stories as Valkyries and with it, an important thing they must have as protectors. Full Recap "Valkyrie title and armor are never meant for naive upstarts or a faint of heart." Akko understood that responsibility as a Valkyrie and protector is not something that can be taken lightly, which is why turning away from it is never an option. Ursula and Diana had assigned her to directly overseeing the progress of the green team's trial to prove their worth as new generation of Valkyries. She was greatly honored to be entrusted with this important task despite Newt's skepticism whether she truly capable for such endeavor, having heard about her recklessness and prone to accidents beforehand that she assigned Molly as her back up. Though she relieved that their trial went smoothly, and she didn't even mess up her part, there was one thing that still bothering her. The armor-clad ratatoskr. Newt told Akko that she would confront a volunteer from Sword of Laeradr who would keep her occupied so her three friends had to fend for themselves against the Screamer Beta once Amanda managed to see through the said volunteer's disguise. When the Sword of Laeradr volunteer eventually revealed himself, he was turned out to be a ratatoskr clad in a suit of armor she instantly recognized from one of chronicle books at the library of Alioth: Caerbannog Armor. According to that book, its user never had a name for it, so the historians of Thapoli instead named the armor after the killer rabbit from Monty Python and the Holy Grail movie. As funny as it sounds, it was not without good reason; the armor's original user had to grow up in harsh condition as result of devastating Thapoli-Naglfar War. He spent his youth as a child soldier fighting alongside a guerrilla group of young Pomokai Holoholonas that later became known as the legendary Wrath of Thor. He killed dozens of Naglfar druids with just a single knife. He'd throw the enemy off guard with the charm of "cute and cuddly squirrel" before preying on them with the cold ruthlessness of a demon. His fur often soaked in his victims' blood, so they called him "Blood Squirrel." Not only that, the Blood Squirrel, or perhaps another ratatoskr who has taken his mantle and armor, went too far in his role and even contested her worth as a Valkyrie. Before she knew it, Akko found herself having a hard time against the Caerbannog Armor-clad Sword of Laeradr volunteer, barely able to both keeping up with his insane speed and parrying his assaults at the same time even with heightened reflexes endowed by her Kara armor. Her opponent then increased the challenge by snapping his jagged spear's shaft into pieces, revealing what appeared to be flexible wires connecting each part to one another like a chain before lashing the weapon on her like a whip with even more merciless ferocity. Distancing herself from the weapon's attack range with a single leap, Akko retaliated by letting loose several magical arrows, but the armored ratatoskr deflected every single one of the shots on ease with his weapon, all while rushing towards her to deliver a side kick she blocked at the very last moments, though another kick managed to send her sailing. The Fire Valkyrie recovered fast enough to see him sending a piece of ceiling he just cut with his whip-spear towards her with another kick, prompting the armor-clad valkyrie-in-training to jump out of the way while simultaneously caught the projectile in the midair with one of her twin ribbons before clumsily redirect it to its sender. Though this failed as the Sword of Laeradr simply cut the oncoming projectile into half with his weapon, it nevertheless distracted him from Akko who swiftly dismantled the jagged whip-spear with multiple quick swipe of her bladed bow before literally uppercut him onto the ceiling. Even so, their duel was far from over, as the Sword of Laeradr volunteer quickly recovered before standing on the ceiling like a ninja and whipped out several ribbons into multiple floating knives that he telekinetically launched towards the Japanese. Acting fast, Akko cried out, "''Metamorphie Fociesse!", magically transformed the oncoming projectiles into several glowing, cartoonish-looking birds that burst into flames before swarmed upon the armored ratatoskr in a devastating kamikaze attack. Even though he managed to prevent the worst by dodging and parrying any fiery birds that get too close, the armored ratatoskr didn't account some of them demolished the ceiling he stood on while he was distracted into pieces, causing him to fell to the floor below and buried alive beneath the rubble.'' Determined to finish the fight quickly and knowing it won't stop her opponent, Akko reconfigured her bladed bow back to its basic Valkyrie Blade form and proceeded to ignite the yellow orb on her breastplate with a conjured burst of flame, compressing the energy inside the armor until it burst with power signified by her expelling the excess flames from her sleeves and Kara Armor's emerald glow shifting to reddish orange. With that power boost, the Fire Valkyrie projected a salvo of fiery missiles from her palms that homing in towards the Sword of Laeradr volunteer just as he jumped out of the pile of debris. Despite his heightened agility and reflexes, the guided projectiles proved to be persistent to connect with their target, and ultimately overwhelmed the armored ratatoskr and scorched a portion of his armor in process. Not taking any chances, Akko shifted her Valkyrie Blade to its great axe form and channeled the remaining energy into it, igniting its sharp edge with reddish white fire as she charged towards her opponent. Simultaneously, the Sword of Laeradr volunteer formed what appeared to be a single-edged thin sword vaguely resembling a straight katana out of his ribbons before encrusted it in a thick layer of magic energy-imbued rocks. The two then clashed their respective energized weapons with a loud clank, causing a massive explosion that trembled the entire floor. As soon as the blast receded, the Fire Valkyrie and the armored ratatoskr return to their feet and charged once again, this time striking one another squarely on each other’s' fists with enough force to produce a shockwave that completely dispersed the smokescreen from the explosion earlier and cracking the floor beneath them. After a beat that felt like minutes, both combatants fell to their knees. With one last look on the Fire Valkyrie, the armored ratatoskr abruptly left the scene by jumping through a large hole they created from the fight earlier. Though bewildered with what just happened, Akko decided to put it aside as she disengaged her Kara armor and set out for the green team's position in time to see Molly cut Screamer Beta's disembodied core into pieces and congratulated the three friends that they have succeeded their trial. Like hers and the Sword of Laeradr volunteer's duel earlier, Amanda and her roommates' fight against the Screamer Beta proved to be rowdy enough to cause a mess in the floor below. The academy is going to have a real problem cleaning up the dungeon. =ᚢᛁᛐᛍᚼᛂᛌ ᚮᚠ ᛘᛁᛑᚵᛆᚱᛑ= Back in the present, Akko, Lotte, Sucy, Amanda, Constanze, Jasminka, and even Molly, are enjoying take out cartons of Chinese food Jasminka treated to them in the red team's dorm room. The Russian found a Chinese Restaurant called Fei Long's Kitchen that recently open at Blytonbury few days earlier, which immediately became popular in span of a day thanks to its dishes' renowned taste. Most of the girls are eating fried rice with exception of Jasminka and Akko whose meals being hakka noodles whereas Sucy's a carton of mushroom noodles. Molly also had Jasminka ordered two extra cartons of fried rice as well, for her roommates Elsa and Amelia. "I can't believe you were tasked by Professor Ursula and Diana to oversee their trial, Akko. And on top of that, you didn't even mess up", Lotte finally speak, expressing her disbelief over the brunette's latest assignment in the dungeon earlier. "I was pretty surprised too. Glad I did my part pretty well", Akko replied in agreement. "I call it a miracle", Sucy muttered while munching some mushrooms in her noodles. "Akko is just lucky that she didn't demolish the entire academy." "Diana was supposedly the one who assigned for this endeavor, but regrettably, the Headmistress assigned her to oversee improvements on the academy's security by Sword of Laeradr this afternoon", Molly explained. "They believed Luna Nova's current security is not enough to endure another assault, so they decided to make some improvements despite the professors' mixed reaction about it. Oh, and she also told me how you guys handle yourselves in your first combat at the construction site on the other day as well. Not many trainees your age could handle their first live mission and lived to tell the tale, you know?" "Now that you mention it. I don't remember that wall popping around our academy. In fact, I don't even see it this morning", Akko said uneasily as she looks at what appeared to be a wall of giant thorny vines that now surrounding Luna Nova through the windows. "I wonder whether it was what those fairies talking about this afternoon", Lotte said. =ᚢᛁᛐᛍᚼᛂᛌ ᚮᚠ ᛘᛁᛑᚵᛆᚱᛑ= "A Naglfar had managed to breach your perimeter, and it won't be the last. Which is why this all necessary to keep the academy safe." "Does this all a bit too far? We haven't yet to resolve all of our financial issues, yet you troubled us with the security budget!" A mild argument ensued between Badcock, Finnelan, and Harr as they, along with Diana and Headmistress Holbrooke, overseeing the construction of a giant wall of thorny vines that surrounding Luna Nova. Badcock is worried such decision will worsen Luna Nova's current financial problems (though she merely overreacting since the issue has become lessened in the light of Yggdrasil's restoration few months back), whereas Finnelan worried the vine wall's presence would negatively affecting Luna Nova's atmosphere due to its unnerving presence. Harr on the other hand, remained adamant that the wall can strengthen Luna Nova's security. "Perhaps some little demonstration would change your minds", Harr said before inquires one of nearby Sword of Laeradr operatives, a young Vedrvolnir who just have finished the final touch of one of runestones that empowering the vine wall, "You there, show these ladies what this wall capable of!" With a nod, the young Vedrvolnir distanced himself from the vine wall before proceeds to magically lift a large chunk of soil from the ground in front of him. He then compressed the soil chunk into a solid rock ball which then launched against the wall. To the witches' surprise, the wall unexpectedly contracts and hardens, causing the oncoming projectile to bounce off it. The vine wall then shifts back to normal afterwards. "Impressive", the awestruck Finnelan whispered, before shaking her head and argued, "But it doesn't change the fact that wall's presence greatly disconcerting our fairies. Not to mention one of them started a rumor that this school is about to turn into a warzone." "Warzone? I understand your concern ma'am, but the decision is final", Harr said sternly. "Right now, Luna Nova is threatened as much as the rest of Midgard. Besides, we're also currently building an outpost not far from the academy along with an underground shelter for everybody since Luna Nova is now officially under our and Thapoli's protection. And don't worry about your financial issues, as this wall, along with our facilities, are free of charge. Besides, we owe a lot to one of your school's graduates. Any problem with that?" Harr's reassurance that Luna Nova won't have to pay the bill for both the wall's construction along with Sword of Laeradr's own facilities relieved Badcock, whereas Finnelan becomes curious with Luna Nova graduate he referred that she asked, "One of our graduates? Who?" "Chariot du Nord", Harr replied with a smile, surprising the four witches. "Now, now, I know she isn't quite reputable in magical world, but for us and Thapoli, she's an outstanding witch as great as Jennifer the Witch herself. It's never her fault she got a bad reputation in our community, but rather those hidebound old witch generations! Because of their limited outlook when it comes about the ways of magic, they become excessively conservative to the point of ignoring the changes all around them and ultimately lost their sight upon the true meaning of magic itself: The power to inspire and connecting each other's hearts. It is something Chariot tried to express through her shows back in her days as Shiny Chariot, though in retrospect, the idea of doing so through magic shows was not a brightest one. As if ignoring positive aspects in her shows was bad enough, their lack of imagination in adapting the ways of magic in modern era has led many to perceive it as an obsolete art destined to be forgotten. It's infuriating to see how the old witch generations' overtly-conservative ways have contributed in the decline of their own kind's craft and culture without they realizing it." Just then, a large boar-like Pomokai Holoholona appears and reported to the vedrvolnir, "Harr, the Jarl has arrived and calls for you!" "Oh, very well", Harr nodded. "Ladies, you are free to go now. Think about everything I said, for sake of your future." With that, Harr flies away, leaving the four witches alone. "What does he mean our old generations lost their sight upon the true meaning of magic?", Finnelan said indignantly once the vedrvolnir is out of sight. "And having lack of imagination?", Badcock added, equally incredulous. As harsh as it sounds, Diana understands better Harr's points about old witch generations are valid: While it is a pleasant surprise for her to learn that both Thapoli and Pomokai Holoholona community appreciated Shiny Chariot contrary to the rest of magical community's expectations, Diana also equally dismayed that old generation of witches had an indirect role in the decline of their kind's craft and culture. Respecting and preserving old ways of magic is one thing, but it won't do any good if not updating them to keep up with the changing times. "When traditional and modern powers mingle, the gate to an unseen world will open." That is the meaning of the fifth word, Sybilladura Lelladybura, of the Seven Words of Arcturus, after all. =ᚢᛁᛐᛍᚼᛂᛌ ᚮᚠ ᛘᛁᛑᚵᛆᚱᛑ= Putting her now-empty food carton down, Akko asked, "Anyway Molly, how did you become a Valkyrie? Wanna share?" "Me?", Molly's expression suddenly sours, avoiding eye contact. "Why are you asking?" "I just curious, that's all!", Akko puffed out her cheeks impatiently. Molly took a deep breath and started into her explanation. "... Remember when I tell you guys how did I become the Ghost Witch in the previous summer holiday? I told you everything... except for one detail: I don't want to let my late sister down." Akko, Sucy, and Lotte exchanged a look before the former asked, "Your late sister?" "I didn't know you have a sibling", Lotte added. The teal blue-haired girl reaches for the pouch attached to her belt and pulls out a piece of folded paper which she then unfolds, revealing it to be a sketch image of a little girl who is unmistakably the younger Molly and a young woman who shared similar hairstyle to the former except that both her eyes are exposed. "Her name is Ragnhild McIntyre. She was the previous Specter Valkyrie and the only family that I had after our parents passed away... ", Molly explained sadly while pointing on the taller girl in the portrait. "She was cool, precise, and at times strict. As my only relative, she did her best to raise me and reminds me of the times we had as a family." "One day, Ragnhild was struck by a terminal disease which forced her to retire and focus on preparing me to become her successor. Neither of us had a choice at that time, for Rota armor was magically tied to our bloodline due to its unique powers: Witch-blacksmiths who forged that armor had put a powerful blood-seal on it so only those from our family, including me, who can use it. Their intentions were noble, but no one could have guessed it would backfire that horribly. As the sole heir of Specter Valkyrie title, I was burdened by everyone's expectation as my sister's successor, yet I was horrible with magic and it worsened my already miserable life in Luna Nova. As if that wasn't bad enough, we both were the last of McIntyres and I deeply feared that Ragnhild cannot live long enough to see me become a Valkyrie she always wanted. When I stumbled upon Horologium Chamber, I thought I can change that all with its time magic, but as you know it, it didn't end well. Even though I couldn't bring myself to tell anyone about that accursed Chamber, the fact that I became friendless while having a sudden breakthrough over my magic for seemingly no reason made Ragnhild suspicious. However, ..." Molly's expression darkened as she recalled on the moment when her Ghost Witch form emerged from the Horologium Chamber just as her late sister entered the academy grounds before continues, "... by the time she came to visit me one day, I have transformed into the Ghost Witch and began destroying everything around me. This of course, prompted her to fight me to prevent me from causing more harm. Despite her deteriorating health, Ragnhild managed to hold me long enough for the professors to arrive on her side, but when they did, I was beginning to regain myself while at the same time, my sister eventually recognized me through my cursed form. Unfortunately, our realization created an opening for the professors to take me down... and the last thing I saw were the eyes of an older sister who left devastated by what her younger sibling had become." "Whoa! Wait a sec! Are you telling us your sister was there when they locked you up inside Horologium Chamber?", Amanda suddenly asked, unsure with what she just heard. "That's right", Molly confirmed somberly. "Shortly after helping you guys arranging the books at the library, I began to remember more about that awful day, and I feared the worst about my sister. I know 200 years had passed since they imprisoned me within that Chamber, but I wanted to know what happened to Ragnhild while I was gone. So, I decided to talk to Professor Ursula about it, even if it means I had to reveal our family's secret as I had no one else to talk to. To my surprise, Professor Ursula already knew I was the missing heir of Specter Valkyrie for quite some time, and even volunteered to accompany me home. With that, we set out for my home at Western Norway despite part of me didn't want to know." "When we finally arrived at my home, I was saddened to see it abandoned, save for its inhabiting faeries. It broke my heart further when they revealed that after my imprisonment inside Horologium Chamber, Ragnhild put everything she had to find the way to restore me - her time, her magic, everything... and even blamed herself over what had happened at the academy. For a time, I thought... I made an irreparable mistake with the only family that I have had to pay for it... and it doesn't help that Rota armor had been missing following her passing... Part of me wished to get back to Horologium Chamber to fix it, but I knew better it would only made everything worse." Silence invaded the room as everyone see how devastated Molly was when she finally returned home only to discover that her last living relative already dead and that her late sister gave up everything she had to try to free her from the Curse of Time. Akko and her friends recalled that the only solution the professors of Luna Nova had to restore Molly at that time was a magic seal designed to slowly erode the curse that afflicted her where it eventually completed its job after 200 years, but neither of them thought about what happened to her family in that meantime. The teal blue-haired witch took a moment to close her eyes to stop herself from tearing up. The breaths she took are long and slow. The sensation passed, and she continued with the story. "Just then, Professor Ursula found Ragnhild's journal and checked on its final entry. To our surprise, it was filled with riddles or rather, clues which only I can understand for some reasons. Following our new lead, we were led to the cliffs Ragnhild and I used to play at together when we were kids, the same place where she was eventually buried. But that's not it all; the remaining clues in that journal implored us to examine her gravestone which, to our pleasant surprise, has a secret compartment with Rota armor inside. It was there I reunited with 'her'." "Her who?", Jasminka asked. "My sister", all Molly said with a smile, startling everyone who present. "Your sister? But your sister is dead", Amanda argued. "Yes, I know", Molly said quickly. "I thought my depression made me seeing things until I noticed Professor Ursula saw her too. At first, we believed someone casted a cruel illusion on us or something that we tried to dispel it to no avail, only to figure out that 'illusion' was really Ragnhild herself after she yelled at us to stop. Despite our initial shock over her return as a ghost, I was happy to finally reunite with her. I really was." "Wow, sounds like she rolled her way out of her grave just to have a family reunion with you", Sucy commented. "I said Ragnhild came back as a ghost, but not in the same way most restless deceased do", Molly argued. "I mean, she casted a spell which enable her to become a ghost-like being upon her death to continue safeguard Rota armor until my return", Molly explained. "She apologized for having pushed all her hopes and dreams onto me without knowing what I felt nor hardships I went through, but I assured her that she held no responsibility for what had happened in Luna Nova. With both of us made amends with each other, Ragnhild finally able to pass on, but not before revealed that she had broken Rota armor's blood seal which allow me to choose whether to pass it to a new bloodline should I no longer desired to become her successor. It was then that I realized how much she loved me and that the only thing that truly matter for her above all else is our happiness. That is why I decided to take her armor and walked on this path." "So you had a choice to reject it, but you didn't because you wanted to honor your sister's wishes?", sucy asked. "Yes", Molly nodded, before lifting her left sleeve to reveal a white Valkyrie Bracelet beneath. It has a symbol in form of charcoal-gray oval with a black eight-pointed star inside a symbol which eerily resembling one on her Ghost Witch form's witch hat. "This armor is not just a symbol for my status as a Valkyrie, but also a keepsake from my late sister. It is not something I can simply cast away, as it also the remnant of the only family that I had." "Say Molly. You know you're not alone anymore", Akko reassured. "Cuz now you got us in your life: Me, Lotte, Sucy, Amanda, Constanze, Jasminka, Elsa, Amelia, and even Diana! We are your friends, remember?" Molly smiles and nods, feeling the warmth and support from her friends. "Of course! I never have any doubt." Just then, the teal blue-haired girl looked at the nearby clock in the room and startled upon seeing it already 08.55 PM. "By the Nine Realms, is that the time? Akko, Lotte, Sucy, I almost forgot. Master Newt wanted to see you guys at Professor Ursula's office right now." "At this late?", Lotte asked. "Yes. She said it's important, and it won't be long", Molly reassured. Akko, Lotte, and Sucy exchanged a look. The three friends are unsure why Master Newt summoned them to Professor Ursula's office at that hour, but nevertheless decided to make their leave. =ᚢᛁᛐᛍᚼᛂᛌ ᚮᚠ ᛘᛁᛑᚵᛆᚱᛑ= Entering the Astronomy Room which also doubles as Professor Ursula's office and living quarters, Akko, Lotte, and Sucy are expected by the red-haired professor who is sitting with Newt tinkering a metallic object on the former's desk. Upon closer inspection, the object is revealed to be some sort of metallic, white and grey prosthetic hand and Newt's exposed right-arm ends with a stump right below the elbow, but the silver-haired witch smiled when she gestured them to sit on a nearby couch. "I presumed you still have some questions that yet to be answered", Newt said. "Is that why you wanted to see us?", Akko asked. "Yes, along with an important thing you must know as a Valkyrie", Newt nodded. "Becoming a Valkyrie means not just about protecting the weak, but also to resist corruption be it from the outside or inside. Some Valkyries go to the dark path because of giving in, and the latest instance was the Dark Valkyrie you encountered on the other day. Although, in her case, I am responsible in a sense because she was once my apprentice." "Apprentice?", Lotte said, startled. "What happened between you two and Professor Ursula?", Akko asked quickly. "It all started from the first week of my Valkyrie training. Master Newt found another candidate for the heir of Geirdriful Armor, who was none other than Helviti herself", Ursula explained as she raises her wand to activate the projector in her office. Soon, the room blackens, and the five witches found themselves standing in a spacious training room which foreign for Akko and her roommates, though they can tell its architecture reminiscent to that of Vikings'. There, they see the younger Ursula aka. Chariot who diligently honing her sword techniques before stops upon noticing Newt and the younger Helviti as they enter the room. Unlike their current selves, Newt's right hand appeared normal and Helviti's bangs are framed on the sides of her face. "Back then, she was used to be a quiet but talented young woman regarded by many as the second coming of the Great Inventor thanks to her impressive mechanical prowess", Ursula narrated as she shifted the scene to that of the young Helviti who tinkering various magi-mechanical equipment and other tools in her personal workshop. The workshop itself had everything she need to craft magical items including a forge, an enchanted anvil, blacksmithing tools, cabinets for parts and other materials, etc. "In her youth, she made many positive contributions to the growth of Thapolian technology including improvements of Valkyrie Armors and other magical items developed by the kingdom, but that's not it all. She also proved herself greatly proficient when it comes about magic and martial arts just like the Great Inventor before her." "Which led to me believing that Helviti might be one of her descendants", Newt added. "As of Great Inventor herself, she was Thapoli's most accomplished witch-blacksmith in the Golden Age of Magic, the one who came up with the idea of combining magic with machinery much like Constanze and Croix. But we can talk about her on the other day." The workshop then shifted to a series of montages of young Chariot and Helviti's Valkyrie training. Whereas Helviti was shown to consistently exemplary, Chariot's progress had a sloppy and clumsy beginning, before gradually improves despite still unable to surpass her rival who always bested her in sparring. "We both trained together under Master Newt's wing, competing for the title of Geirdriful the Sky Valkyrie", Ursula narrated. "Out of both of us, Helviti was always the best. Even though we were rivals and I always wanted to outperform Helviti despite the vast difference of our talents, I admired her for being an outstanding Valkyrie I aspired to become at the same time. Unfortunately, my admiration for her blinded me from something that Master Newt saw over the course of our training." "Blinded you from what?", Sucy asked. "The fact that she lacked the heart of a protector", Newt replied somberly, before the montages abruptly fade into the darkness as if that was a response, startling Akko and her roommates. Before long, the five witches found themselves returned to the Astronomy Room. "What do you mean she lacked the heart of a protector?", Lotte asked. "Is that why she turned bad?", Akko added. "To say that she turned bad is an understatement", Newt said. "From the beginning, Helviti valued strength that it drove her to become one of the strongest Valkyries in magical world, which also reflected on her works. There's nothing wrong in attaining strength if intentions behind it remain pure and it's not poisoning your mind. But you must know that as protectors, strength is not everything. The only thing that matter is whether we have a strong desire to protect others." The silver-haired woman then turned on Ursula and asked, "May I?" Ursula nodded, allowing her mentor to activate the projector to show everyone something else. Once again, the room is enveloped by a familiar darkness as she narrates, "The moment when I sensed the growing darkness in Helviti's heart was when three of us were assigned to investigate a ghost outbreak at Horgsholt Ruins, ruins that used to be a Naglfar fortress build to protect a gateway that connecting Midgard and Helheim, the underworld realm. Normally Thapoli would send their best Wild Hunters to deal the restless spirits of the dead, but since it also involving a gateway between realms, the kingdom sent us to confirm the severity of the situation and thus we had to avoid confrontations as much as possible. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived, the situation proved to be far worse than we thought: Someone had restored the gateway and stabilized it enough for both ghosts and magic from that realm to seeping into our world. And before long, we found ourselves surrounded by the released spirits of the dead..." The darkness around the witches shifted to ruins surrounded by old, corroded trees beneath the moonlight of a night sky. The ruins itself is completely rundown and desolate, devoid of human life save for the younger Newt who standing with Chariot and Helviti together, with backs facing each other and drawn Valkyrie Blades ready for combat. Dozens of ghosts can be seen surrounding them, with murderous intent on their glowing yellow eyes. In contrast of ghosts Akko and her friends encountered back during the annual Wild Hunt last year, each of these ghosts sported a tattered cloak and what appeared to be a spear or staff on their skeletal hands. A tall, runic stone arch that holding a red and black portal that constantly emitting a shadowy aura can be seen nearby, which is unmistakably the gateway Newt mentioned earlier. "Stay close to us, Chariot", the younger Newt warned. "Don't worry about it", Chariot reassured confidently. "Now that you're in your first combat, it's up to you to defend yourself", Helviti added. "Hey, you're no Master Valkyrie here!" "Enough, you two! They're coming!" Three of the cloaked ghosts rushed towards Helviti, who calmly reconfigures her Valkyrie Blade into glaive form and cleaves the approaching enemies with little to no effort. Transforming hers into a sword-spear form, Newt smack one of the opponents on the side of the head before beheading another and stabbed the previous one, dispersing both. Chariot on the other hand, turns her Valkyrie Blade into a round shield and pulls out its baton that assumes a light sword form before fighting one of cloaked ghosts. However, her rival and mentor made it look a lot easier than it was, as one of the attacking ghosts managed to send her sailing with a single swipe of its staff. Worse, the blow also knocked her weapon off her hand in process, leaving her nothing but her round shield to protect herself. Raising her shield, Chariot prepared for the worst as the cloaked ghost moved in to finish her, only for it unceremoniously impaled by Newt from behind, dispersing it into evaporating mass of ectoplasm. "M-master Newt", Chariot stammered. "Don't let go of your sword so easily!", Newt chided. "Y-yes!", Chariot nodded before quickly retrieves her light sword and join the battle. Her mentor's younger self's predicament in that fight reminds Akko to a similar situation in her and her friends' first combat on the other day. As she expected, Ursula's early days in her Valkyrie career was a tough one, both during the training and the first combat. Both her and Ursula were once having their weapons knocked off their hands by an enemy and chided for it, and even had a one-sided rivalry with their rivals (though she and Diana already become friends by the time the two became Valkyries). In contrast of Diana however, Helviti didn't bother to aid her fellow trainee when she was cornered by an enemy. In fact, despite of them fighting multiple enemies side by side, the silver-haired Valkyrie trainee is shown too focused on defeating cloaked ghosts at hand without regarding the well-being of either Newt or Chariot. While Helviti herself admittedly already strong enough to handle herself in combat, Akko felt that this isn't right. Suddenly, the portal on the runic stone arch pulsates as something slowly emerging from it. To Newt and her protege's confusion, the cloaked ghosts unexpectedly fled the scene, apparently out of fear with the malevolent presence from the portal. To everyone's surprise, the entity that emerged from the portal is revealed to be an enormous, red spectral bear. "Devilclaw!", Lotte hissed. "You know that ghost, Miss Yanson?", Newt asked. "Yes. One of deadliest ghost ever faced by Wild Hunters!", Lotte explained. "So that's how Devilclaw looked like? Interesting", Sucy commented. Despite the spectral bear's terrifying appearance, Helviti calmly approaches Devilclaw with no signs of fear in her eyes. Having finally found a worthy opponent, Helviti smirks. "This is the one. Let me handle this, Master Newt." "You what?!", Chariot yelped incredulously as she rushed to her rival only to be stopped by Newt who nodded, "We'll right behind you in case of you need help." "That won't be necessary", Helviti reassured coldly, before turned on Devilclaw and challenged, "Now, show me your strength." The spectral bear lunges towards the silver-haired Valkyrie trainee with talons thrusted forward, prompting Helviti to backflipped out of the way. She then jumped onto Devilclaw's back and thrusts her magic glaive against its nape, causing it to trash around to rid of the Valkyrie trainee from its body. When it seemingly did after several painful attempts however, the spectral bear receives a powerful, magic-infused kick on the jaw that send it flying phasing through a nearby wall in return, covering it with its ectoplasm. Returning to its feet, the spectral bear decided to flee for its undeath life, but Helviti won't let her prey escape, not after disappointing her. "It's clear I gained nothing from defeating you", Helviti cursed under her breath before abruptly stopped in front of the spectral bear, startling it long enough for her to cleave it into half, dispersing it into a mass of evaporating ectoplasm as it banished back to the land of the dead. "Helviti!" Chariot exclaimed in absolute awe upon such astonishing feat. Newt on the other hand, remained silent most of the time. "I think that will do", Newt said quietly as everything fade into the darkness as she, Ursula, and the red team returned to Astronomy Room once again. "What happened next?", Lotte asked at once. "I mean, that gateway." "The gateway to Helheim had been closed. I and my fellow Master Valkyries dismantled that arch and had its remains disposed to prevent anyone from using it ever again. The still-roaming ghosts on the other hand, had been banished by the Wild Hunters", Newt explained. "I took my time inspecting the dismantled arch where I figured out whoever put that gate back together has decent but somewhat limited knowledge about means to create an interdimensional rift between worlds, something that entrusted only to a selected few due to dangers other realms pose to our world, but even they won't dare to toy with it. No, whoever did it had illegally studied that knowledge for quite some time, and I remember I caught Helviti studying a forbidden magic tome at the Great Library of Thapoli before confiscating it few days prior." "The latter fact bothered me so much that I decided to check on that tome only to figure out someone had managed to steal it. The culprit also attempted to steal Geirdriful Bracelet as well, but failed thanks to its worthiness enchantments. I had a little time to investigate what had happened when I sensed a disturbance in magic on the air originated from Helviti's workshop, and I had a feeling I knew who was responsible. That was the moment I caught Helviti who messing with another gate she had created in her workshop as part of her illegal experiments with that tome's aid, but that's not it all: Having anticipated my arrival, Helviti revealed herself to be the one who restored the gate at Horgsholt Ruins so she can obtain a portion of magic from Helheim itself. I tried to reason with her against attaining such forbidden power, but my warnings were ignored, and I lost my hand because of her. Had it not been for my carelessness in leaving Geirdriful Bracelet unguarded in my office which allowed Chariot to use its powers, and for her timely action when Helviti was about to deliver a final blow, I might not have lived to tell the tale. Despite our best efforts, we failed to prevent Helviti from escaping Thapoli and as you know it, she has joined Naglfar for her own ends." "Helviti crafted her own armor in secret upon realizing she can never become the next Sky Valkyrie", Ursula added as she conjures a three-dimensional holographic projection of Helviti's Nevar Armor complete with its wings with her projector. "At that time, its powers were pale compared to ours, but her meddling with magic from Helheim allowed her to briefly fight both of us on even grounds. It surprised me she managed to make significant improvement despite only knows the basics of crafting Valkyrie Armors. Her mastery over that forbidden power proved to be more than enough to compensate such shortcoming." "And with her on their side, we deeply feared that Naglfar now gained a better understanding about the power of Valkyrie Armors. Even so, we still have an advantage as their knowledge about our armors is still lacking, which evident from Elder Erik's attempt to steal yours. Even if she can forge other armors as powerful as hers without them, the resulted knock-offs would appeal less than an alternative power they worked on since the war. They just need information pertaining Valkyrie Armors to perfected it." "No matter what. We have to stop them", Akko said firmly. "That's what we're doing", Newt nodded. "Akko, I know you don't like the idea of using magic to harm others, but sometimes protecting something means be willing to harm something else." "Protecting something..." Akko murmured with Sucy continued, "...and the will to harm something?" "That's the same as us, isn't it?", Lotte wondered, reflecting upon the latest events. "I mean, we were protecting something by hurting other things as we fought. Even justice has light and dark side to it." "The same can be said with magic itself", Akko nodded. "Is that right, Lotte?" "Yes", the Finnish nods. "Maybe that's what it means." Looking at her pocket watch, Newt is surprised to see it's already 10:30 PM. "Odin's beard, is it that time already? You'd better get going, girls, or we'll all be in trouble." The red team walked out of the room with Akko being the last. Newt re-attaches her mechanical prosthetic hand to the stump while Ursula continue her work on her papers. A movement from the door made them look around: Akko is still standing there. "Akko, you don't want Diana or Professor Finnelan caught you out of bed out of hours, do you?", Ursula said. "Professor Ursula, Master Newt, do you know anything about the Sword of Laeradr volunteer in the dungeon, don't you? Who was he?", Akko asked. "The volunteer from the dungeon?", Ursula said. "Hmm, I'm not sure, but Asger knows him. In fact, it was he who recommended us to have that ratatoskr taking part in Amanda and her teammates' trial." "He did?" "Yes, and he also said that ratatoskr just have moved in very recently", Newt added. "Although, I found his armor familiar somehow. He gave you a hard time, didn't he?" "Not quite, though we both left quite a mess. But the way he fights, his weapon, and his outfit... could he be the Blood Squirrel?" Ursula gasped upon hearing that moniker, whereas Newt frowns. "I-I'm not sure that was really him myself!", Akko frantically corrected herself. "I mean, I've read about him and that volunteer's outfit looked just like his Caerbannog Armor. But that's not it all. He questioned my worth as a Valkyrie and went all-out instead of just distracting me from helping Amanda. I had no choice but to give my all as well. And afterwards, he left. Is that supposedly part of our scenario?" The older witches exchange a look for a moment, before Ursula finally said, "No. We instructed him only to keep you occupied so Amanda and her roommates had to fend for themselves without your interference and nothing else. It's clear the volunteer had his own motives in this, but in any case, you did your part very well. You even surprised us through the way you combined Metamorphosis Magic and Flame Magic to turn his projectiles against him." "That was what I could think of, but I'm glad it did", Akko said sheepishly. "And as for that volunteer, you two can leave it to me", Newt reassured. "Besides, I also intended to check on his records." Author's Note Phew, now I know it would be weeks to complete a chapter if I really put my backs into it. When writing this chapter, I had a consideration in adding a subplot where Diana would visit an associate of her late mother and the previous Eir the Ice Sword Valkyrie. However due to hitting another writer's block and wanting to finish this chapter quickly, I decided to save it for future chapters and wrote the part where she and the teachers overseeing wall of thorns being built around the school in its place. The wall of thorn itself is a small allusion to Sleeping Beauty tale, though in this fic, the wall bears much more resemblance to its 2014 film Maleficent iteration since it was built to protect a land/location where in this fic's case, Luna Nova itself. Harr's statement where magic is the power to inspire and connecting each other's hearts, along with his criticisms upon old witch generations refers by the meaning of the Final Word of Seven Words of Arcturus and issues between new and old generation of witches which explicitly shown in Little Witch Academia anime, particularly in Samhain Magic and New Age Magic episodes: Whereas in Samhain Magic most inhabitants of Luna Nova only sees Vajarois as mere instrument for Samhain Magic and no longer remember her as a former human as result (with exception of Akko and Ursula), New Age Magic episode highlighted how old witch generations' overtly-conservative ways when it comes about traditions ultimately bite them once a crisis arise. About Molly's expanded bio. in this fic, I intentionally made a bittersweet backstory for the character due to a jarring question that yet to be answered in Chamber of Time game: What happened to her family while she was trapped in Horologium Chamber for 200 years? Through not-so-lengthy discussion with Navid 1600, I managed to finish it after 2 drafts. For Ursula aka. Chariot and Helviti's history with each other on the other hand, I decided to make it contrasted to that of between the former and Croix by establishing them as rivals where their rivalry is somewhat one-sided just like between Diana and Akko. But unlike Diana or Croix, the only thing that Helviti had in mind was getting stronger and it ultimately consume her. See'ya all next time~ Category:Fan Fictions Category:Series Category:Witches of Midgard-verse